In large cities, the current trend is a change towards increasing use of urban public transport networks such as trams running on tires. Among the vehicles running on tires currently used, some are guided by a central rail embedded into the road surface. This guide rail sometimes crosses another rail in which case a crossing system is necessary.
In conventional railway crossings, that is, designed for the crossing of two railway tracks, the rails are interrupted at the crossing, with sufficient spacing to allow passage of the central protruding part of railway wheels, known as the flange or rim. Generally, the space is a few centimeters. It can be seen in FIG. 1 which illustrates a prior embodiment.
If one of the crossing rails is a guide rail, it is not always considered tolerable to interrupt this rail over any considerable length, essentially for reasons of reliable guidance. Indeed, especially for the guidance of road-going vehicles by a central rail, for the homologation of traffic on the public roads, the rail must not contain any gaps more than a few millimeters long.
Accordingly, conventional railway crossings are unsuitable for the crossing of a guide rail with another rail whether it is a guide rail, a conventional railway rail or any other type of rail. Therefore, there is a requirement for a specific crossing device designed for the crossing of a first rail with a guide rail.
In addition, because guidance of public transport vehicles running on tires by a central rail is generally used in the urban environment, the guide rails and the other rails are all embedded into the road surface having their top surface flush with the road surface to allow the passage of other road going vehicles, especially cars, on the road surface. This recessing of the rails into the road surface means that the desired specific crossing device must not only fulfil this requirement but it must also be itself recessed into the road surface and not impede vehicular traffic.